Unscheduled Landing
by KillingMeSoftly123
Summary: My take on the Olicity Flash Fiction challenge "Into the Wild" . *********** "There's a reason Slade was so easily convinced that you were the woman I love. I didn't have to sell it Felicity. I just had to acknowledge it." ************
1. Chapter 1

Notes: Authors Notes Below Taken from another flash fiction (thanks SmoakandArrow) This is a flash fiction story written as part of the Olicity Flash Fic Challenge going on at Tumblr. It's a free writing challenge with the story "inspired" by the supplied weekly prompt. Flash fics are written, edited and posted in only 60 minutes, so please excuse any typos.

Chapter 1: unscheduled landing

"Are you okay?"

Felicity felt a large hand reach out to find the small of her back. Concern was evident in his touch.

"We're still alive?" the young blond woman said opening her eyes and pulling her head up from between her knees. "What happened?"

Oliver looked at his partner questioningly. "I don't know. One minute we were fine and the next minute we had lost power to the engines and were landing here." Here was a grassy meadow at the foot of two rather large mountain ranges. Oliver was surprised that the plane was actually still in one piece after their rough landing. The whole thing could have gone a lot worse.

"I thought you said you knew how to fly a plane. I can't believe I let you talk me into this." Felicity fought to undo the seat belt pinning her to her seat. Oliver reached over to free her from the harness. He put a hand on her shoulder to calm her and to reassure himself that she was indeed fine. She leaned into his touch and looked up at him. They shared a small smile.

She watched as Oliver tapped forcibly on the plane's computerized dash system. Indicator lights flickered on briefly and then faded away. He tried a second time with the same results. He sighed and then started rummaging around the plane. "I don't suppose you have any cell service?"

Felicity fiddled with her phone and shook her head. "Zero bars."

"It's pretty remote up here, I doubt anyone noticed our landing. I'll hike out to get some help." Oliver put an energy bar and a bottle of water in a backpack. "Judging from our last flight check I think we're at least 10 to 15 miles out from the nearest community."

Felicity grabbed him by the forearm. "Oh no you don't. You are not leaving me here alone. Have you not seen the English Patient or any other plane crash movie?"

Oliver looked at her blankly and shook his head.

"The man always ends up leaving the woman alone while he goes for help after a plane crash. Long story short is that she usually dies. Or gets eaten by something. Or dies while getting eaten by something." Felicity pushed her hands against his chest to emphasize her words. "That woman is not going to be me."

Oliver blinked slowly. "We're not in a movie Felicity."

"Well sometimes it feels like one. I'm coming with you."

They spent the next few minutes organizing what they might need for a forest walk. They hadn't packed much since it was only supposed to be a quick cross border trip to check on a Queens Consolidated mineral holding in Northern Canada. Oliver had been spending the last few months slowly putting his company back together after the events that transpired in the spring.

"I've never been so happy to have worn travel clothes. I can't even imagine trying to hike out of here in heels." Felicity admired her Converse sneakers for a moment.

Oliver grunted in acknowledgment. "Did you grab the emergency landing kit? It might have some things we'll need if we have to spend the night in the woods."

Felicity tossed Oliver the kit and he fastened it to his backpack. "Do you really think we'll have to spend the night out there?" She gestured to the wide expanse of wilderness surrounding them. She tried to keep the nervousness out of her voice but she could tell Oliver picked up on it.

"Depends how long it takes us to reach civilization. Changing your mind about staying with the plane?" He stood up and adjusted the pack on his back.

"I'd still rather take my chances sleeping with you in the woods." She closed her eyes as heat rushed to her face.

He cocked his head and raised his eyebrows slightly. The corners of his mouth threatened to turn up. "In that case, let's head out."

He helped her stand up and tightened the backpack on her small frame. He started walking into the dense canopy of the forest.

Felicity muttered something about never flying with Oliver again under her breath and followed her partner into the woods.

Notes: Had to stop writing at the 60 minute mark. My first flash fic attempt. That time limits creeps up fast!. Obviously meant to be more :) Thanks for reading!


	2. Chapter 2

The first hour they spent walking wasn't so bad. The weather cooperated and they hiked along in companionable silence. The subsequent 2 hours became increasingly less pleasant. It was very slow going as Oliver had to break trail as they went. By the end of the third hour, they were both frustrated and had a multitude of cuts and scrapes up their arms from rogue branches.

Oliver eventually stopped to examine their surroundings. They were losing daylight quickly. "We've been at this for about 3 hours now. I don't think we're going to make it out of here before it gets dark. We should probably stop for the night."

Felicity looked less than thrilled at the prospect. She nodded in agreement. "The forest canopy should provide some cover if the weather changes." She glanced up at the sky hoping that the grey clouds didn't look too ominous.

Oliver knelt down and began to arrange small branches into a rough pyramid shape. "I'll make a fire."

Felicity set her backpack down and started collecting branches of varying sizes. A loud cracking noise broke the silence of the forest behind them.

"What was that?" Felicity froze and grabbed the sleeve of Oliver's tee-shirt.

Oliver glanced over his shoulder in the general direction of the sound. "Not sure, probably just a squirrel. Or something."

"It's the 'or something' that I worry about." Felicity shuddered slightly. "I would feel a lot better if you had your bow with you."

"Trust me Felicity, the animals are a lot more scared of us than we are of them."

"I highly doubt that."

Oliver paused in his wood stacking. "I'm guessing you haven't spent much time out in the great outdoors before?"

"I grew up in Las Vegas Oliver. The only wild animals I've seen up close are pink flamingos and white Bengal tigers."

Oliver chuckled. He finished arranging the kindling and lit a small fire using the matches from the emergency kit. "This should help keep the animals away."

Felicity paced a circle around the fire. "Come on, admit it. I'm sure Oliver Queen was not a great outdoors man before the Island."

"No, I most definitely was not a Boy Scout."

Felicity raised her eyebrows at him. "In more ways than one I'm sure," she said gently teasing him.

Oliver held her gaze for a moment. He gave her a half smile and stood up to dust himself off.

"What's our food situation like?"

Felicity rummaged through her pack. "Well, we have 4 energy bars left and a couple of bottles of water. That should hold us until tomorrow."

"We're bound to run into civilization soon. We've probably hiked about 9 or 10 miles by this point."

Felicity moved over to where Oliver was unpacking their supplies. She spoke to him over his shoulder. "We won't have much for warmth but at least we have a tarp for the ground- or if it starts to rain. Plus the first aid kit has those aluminum foil blanket things if all else fails."

She took the tarp and spread it out on a somewhat level spot by the fire. She watched as Oliver climbed halfway up a nearby tree to string the pack containing their food ration. She looked at him questionably as he jumped agilely down from the branches.

"Bears," he said simply.

"I thought you said they would be more scared of us..." Felicity squeaked.

"No need to tempt fate."

Felicity woke up and couldn't figure out why her eyes wouldn't open. It took her a moment to realize that her eyes were open but it was so dark that she couldn't see anything.

"Oliver..." she whispered, sliding closer to the other spot of warmth on the tarp.

"I'm here," he said after a moment. "Sorry, I let the fire burn out. You were sleeping and I didn't want to wake you getting more wood."

"It's so dark," she said with an edge of panic in her voice.

She felt Oliver's arm slide around her body and pull her towards him so that the back of her head was up against his shoulder. His arm rested against her chest and stomach and she relaxed into him. She could feel his breath on the back of her neck.

"Do you want me to light the fire again? Are you cold?"

"No, I'm okay," she said folding her arms underneath his. Felicity concentrated on calming herself by matching her breathing rhythm to Oliver's.

"When I first got back from Lian Yu I couldn't sleep very well. I had gotten so used to the darkness that the lights of the city took some time to adjust to."

"Does this make you think about being on the Island?" Felicity said, her fingers absently tracing patterns on his forearm.

"Not really," he said moving his head closer to her ear. "You're here."

The air between them became noticeably heavier. It was as though they both suddenly realized how intimate it was to lie so close to someone in total darkness.

Notes:

Decided to keep it as a flash fiction. Stopped writing at the 60 minute mark. Thanks for reading as always :)


	3. Chapter 3

"Not really," he said moving his head closer to her ear. "You're here."

The air between them became noticeably heavier. It was as though they both suddenly realized how intimate it was to lie so close to someone in total darkness. The absence of light made it easier to temporarily forget the boundaries they normally set up between one another.

Felicity turned so that she was facing him. Oliver kept his arm wrapped around her waist, his hand slipping down to rest on her side. She tucked her chin against him and allowed herself the simple pleasure of feeling his chest rise and fall beneath her. She closed her eyes and inhaled against his chest. There was no awkwardness between them. It felt natural, familiar even. Together they listened to the various sounds coming from the forest that seemed to echo in the night.

They stayed like that until Felicity felt Oliver shift and bring his hand up to the back of her head. "Felicity, lie still for a moment," he whispered close to her. Oliver slowly reached into his pocket for the small switchblade that he took from the plane's emergency kit.

"Oliver?" Felicity whispered back to him. She squinted in vain to try and see what he was concerned about.

"There's something out there. It's small, whatever it is. I'm sure it's just curious whether or not we have any food." Oliver spoke softly, in a measured tone.

"As long as it's not interested in having us as food," Felicity said quietly, more to herself than to Oliver. She stilled and she could hear the shuffling of something moving around in the darkness.

"I want to see what it is but I don't want to startle it. There's a small chance it could be a skunk. That is not something I want to meet up with in the dark," Oliver said, weighing out his options.

"Skunk? Of all the things to worry about out here that was most definitely not on my list... it is now." Felicity pushed herself off of Oliver so that he could move more easily.

Oliver sat up and struck a match. For a brief moment they could see shadows around their makeshift little camp. Two beady eyes reflected the light of the match back at them. The animal scurried back into the relative safety of the forest.

"Just a raccoon. No need to panic." Oliver waited for the match to burn out, staring into the night. "I can stay awake and keep watch. Why don't you try and get some rest?"

Felicity nodded and moved closer to where he was sitting. Darkness slowly enveloped them once again as the match extinguished. Oliver lay back down on the tarp and pulled Felicity towards him.

He could tell that she was shivering slightly so he ran his hand up and down her arm to warm her. He stopped once her shaking subsided and dropped his hand back down to her waist.

"Thank you," Felicity said. "I'm sorry that I'm so frightened of everything. Considering what we do every day I feel rather ridiculous." Felicity shook her head in the darkness.

"Don't sell yourself short. You're brave in so many ways. I've seen it. Everyone's entitled to a few fears."

"I seem to have a few more than most. I'm guessing Oliver Queen isn't scared of that many things?"

"Tax audits," Oliver deadpanned. "I break out into a cold sweat just thinking about them."

"You'll be happy to know that they are way less frightening when your tax bracket drops down a few levels," Felicity teased.

"Something to look forward to now that I'm broke."

Even in the dark she could feel him smile. She automatically smiled in response even though he couldn't see her. They were both silent for a moment.

She rested her forehead on his chest and sighed. "You would be scared of a tax audit. Not much else fazes the Arrow."

He paused. "That's not true. I was scared when Slade took you," Oliver said honestly. He traced his thumb in patterns along her side. "I don't know what I would have done if things had ended differently." The air became heavy between them again.

Felicity tried to ignore the gooseflesh that was rising underneath his thumb. "It's funny. I was scared then too but in a different way. I knew you would come for me. I knew you would beat him. And you did. It's over." Felicity spread her palm on his chest to reassure him once again that she really was fine.

"But at what price Felicity? The risk was unthinkable." Oliver brought his chin down to rest on the top of her head. She leaned into him.

They both were lost in their own thoughts for a moment. They may have recovered physically from that day but the emotional toll that it took was still very evident.

"Do you want to know what scares me the most Felicity?" Oliver asked softly, almost in a whisper. He spoke to her just above her ear, his lips touching her hair. "It scares me to know that you're lying right here beside me still thinking that I lied to you when I told you that I loved you."

Oliver leaned even closer, facing her, their cheeks almost touching. She couldn't see him but she could feel his breath warm against her lips.

"And it terrifies me knowing that I didn't," he said hesitating, waiting for her reaction.

Notes:

60 minutes in... thanks for reading! Reviews always appreciated :)


	4. Chapter 4

_Previously__…_

_"Do you want to know what scares me the most Felicity?" Oliver asked softly, almost in a whisper. He spoke to her just above her ear, his lips touching her hair. "It scares me to know that you're lying right here beside me still thinking that I lied to you when I told you that I loved you." _

_Oliver leaned even closer, facing her, their cheeks almost touching. She couldn't see him but she could feel his breath warm against her lips. _

_"And it terrifies me knowing that I didn't," he said hesitating, waiting for her reaction. _

"Oh," Felicity said softly, not elaborating any further.

Oliver suddenly understood why people always said silence could be deafening. He counted the breaths between them. He stopped counting when he realized that she appeared at a loss for words.

"Is that all you have to say?" He pulled away from her slightly. He really wished that he could see her face in the darkness.

Felicity waited a moment to reply. "I'm not sure what it is that you want me to say Oliver. I'm not even sure what I can say. Part of me is still having a hard time forgetting what happened that night."

Oliver cringed inwardly.

Felicity took a breath and continued. "Do you know that I have spent the better part of the last few months trying to deal with the fact that you only said that you loved me in order to take down Slade. Not to mention trying to process our incredibly awkward conversation on the beach of Lian Yu." Felicity exhaled slowly.

"I'm not trying to make you upset Felicity. I just wanted you to know. I've wanted you to know for a while now. That's why I didn't say anything that day on the beach. I couldn't. I was too scared."

"I don't understand Oliver, then why tell me now?"

"I don't know. When I'm with you like this it's hard for me to think of anything else. Do you remember when I told you that because of the life that I lead I thought that it was better for me not to be with someone that I could really care about?"

"Yes." She said cautiously, memories of Russia and Isabel flashing briefly through her mind. She stiffened involuntarily.

"I truly believed that. I still believe that. The problem is that it's too late Felicity. I already care about you. We're already involved. There's a reason Slade was so easily convinced that you were the woman I love. I didn't have to sell it Felicity. I just had to acknowledge it."

"The way I look at it now is that I'm really only left with two options. To let myself be with you, face my fears and deal with the consequences." He paused, his fingers lightly stroking the side of her waist. "Or I have to let you go completely."

"Oliver..." Felicity's breath caught in her throat.

Oliver brought his hands up to cradle her face. She closed her eyes and leaned into his touch. "I'm too selfish to let you go completely. I couldn't if I tried."

She trembled slightly and he paused for a moment.

"I don't just love you Felicity, I'm in love with you. Do you understand?" He whispered the words to her, much like the night weeks ago in the mansion.

"Yes," Felicity said mirroring her original response. She leaned forward until she could feel Oliver's breath against her face. Their foreheads touched and they rested against one another. Her hands were balled up against his chest and she could feel the slight quickening of his heartbeat. Time seemed to stand still for a moment.

All talk between them ceased as Oliver's mouth closed lightly upon hers. Her lips parted at the gentle pressure and his tongue delved into her mouth meeting hers for the first time. One of his hands caught her hair and pulled her closer, while the other moved slowly to the side of her waist sliding up and underneath the bottom of her tee shirt. His hand ventured upward no further than her ribcage, his thumb gently stroking lines across her bare stomach. Felicity shivered, a shiver that had nothing to do with fear or cold. Her hands spread out against him. Slowly she began to explore, feeling the muscles in his chest contract beneath her palms.

"Oliver... Felicity..."

Calls from the darkness pulled them out of their embrace. They could see the reflection of light coming from flashlights shining along the tops of the trees in the distance.

They both stood up quickly.

"We're here!" Oliver called out, striking a match and fumbling in the darkness for the emergency kit. He found the kit and quickly lit the emergency signal flare inside. As the flare ignited it produced an arc in the sky casting orange shadows around them. They took a moment to observe one another. Felicity gave Oliver a tentative smile. The light from the flare filled her face with a soft glow. He reached forward to take her hand.

The moment was interrupted as Dig and Roy came crashing into the site looking tired and out of breath. Oliver and Felicity blinked rapidly as the bright light from the flashlights temporarily blinded them.

Roy caught his breath first. "Why didn't you guys just stay at the crash site? It took us forever to find you out here."

Notes: Flash Fiction style. I'm sorry it's a bit of a short chapter. The 60 minutes went fast on this one. I didn't want to change writing styles 4 chapters in though so I went with it. Thanks for reading as always. Reviews always welcome :)


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